Monthly Archives: May 2015

Posted on

Leaving a Legacy

Memorial day has come and gone. Graduation ceremonies abound. It’s a perfect time to think of the potential that is within all of us and the legacy we will leave behind. Do you ever think about the legacy you will leave? Psalm 112:1-3 says:

1 Praise the Lord! How joyful are those who fear the Lord
    and delight in obeying his commands.
2 Their children will be successful everywhere;
    an entire generation of godly people will be blessed.
3 They themselves will be wealthy,
    and their good deeds will last forever.

Their children will be successful EVERYWHERE. An ENTIRE generation will be blessed. Their good deeds will last FOREVER. Now that is a legacy! Our good decisions can bless an entire generation and our good deeds can last forever. Conversely, our poor decisions can become our legacy and influence generations to come. The decisions you make in business and in life have eternal consequences. What a privilege and responsibility!

Even if we don’t have children of our own or a protege training directly under us, we all have successors. Any child near you is watching everything you do (much more than they are listening to what you say.) You have teams at work and church. Maybe you lead a class or hold a political office. I have nieces and patients and young church friends and members of my community who are watching the decisions I make and how I handle myself.

Who is YOUR “next generation?”

What legacy do you want to leave? What are you doing to cultivate your legacy?

 

Posted on

It IS What They Hear!

“I am responsible for what I say…not what you hear!” I’ve seen several friends share something similar to this on Facebook over the past couple of years. It sounds perfectly logical…if you live in a vacuum and don’t care about relationships or communication.

It’s true that you can’t MAKE someone understand you. You can’t GUARANTEE that your words will be understood and your feelings will be conveyed. However, it’s your responsibility as a leader, mentor, parent, student, teacher, doctor, etc to communicate with your audience in mind. You can throw up your hands, turn your head and say “Oh well! I told them. Not my fault if they didn’t get it!” or you can take a little time and effort to do your best to communicate your thoughts, feelings and intentions. In my life I do this on a daily basis by:

  • Not using jargon. Words, phrases and abbreviations might be very commonplace to you but sound like a foreign language to others. Your audience might not ask you for clarification because they don’t want to look “stupid.” Don’t put them in that position. Often our jargon becomes second-nature. Ask someone to bring it to your attention if you have trouble catching yourself.
  • Mirroring my audiences communication style. On a daily basis I might talk to a surgeon, elementary teacher, factory worker, teenager and an elderly patient with dementia. I don’t change who I am depending on who I’m talking to, but I certainly change my communication style to make sure I am understood. Always remember to whom you’re speaking.
  • Restating key points in a different way. Don’t be needlessly repetitive, but make sure to state the same key point using different words at a different time during the conversation. It might be that second phrase that really sticks.
  • Reading (to the best of my ability) my audience’s expression and body language. Granted, some people don’t HAVE expressions or appropriate body language, but you can often tell if someone is confused, uncomfortable or bored. This is important information. Use it!

If you take an “it’s not my problem” approach to communication you’ll never grow as a leader or a person. What techniques do you employ to assure you are understood?